POWER OF THE STATE 



by 



ARTHUR J- WESTERMAYR, LL. M. 

(Member of New York Bar) 
and 

COLONEL JASPER EWING BRADY 

(Late U. S. Army) 



POWER OF THE STATE 



by 



ARTHUR J* WESTERMAYR, LL. M. 

(Member of New York Bar) 

and 

COLONEL JASPER EWING BRADY 

(Late U. S. Army) 
Authors of "IT IS THE LAW." 












THE 


(AST. 






A lies 


in Time 




of 


Play. 


Horace Lynbrook, Pu 


blic Prosecutor 


40 


Harriet Lynbrook, 


his wife 


32 


Melvin Malcolm, 


her brother 


38 


Ruth Malcolm, 


his wife 


34 


Grace Lynbrook. 


the daughter 


11) 


Lamont Malcolm, 


the son 


22 


Roger, 


the bastard 


L6 


Hershey, 


the butler 


45 


•lames Crawford, 


the lawyer 


40 



Copyright, 1916, by Arthur ]. Westermayr and Jasper Ewing 
Brady. All rights reserved for every purpose whatsoever. 




OCT 19 1916 

©CI.A445245 
->M> / 1 



TMPS2-007574 



POWER OF THE STATE. 

AN AMERICAN DRAMA 

by 

ARTHUR J. WESTERMAYR LL. M. 
(MEMBER n. y. bar.) 

and 

COL. JASPER EWING BRADY 

(late u. s. army.) 

EXPLANATORY NOTE: Harriet and Melvin 
Malcolm are half brother and sister. A rich aunt 
of their mother adopted Harriet in babyhood and 
brought her up in society. Melvin, the child of 
the first marriage, by three years Harriet's senior, 
teas not favored by the aunt and works his wwy 
in the world without any of the favoring circum- 
stances which make Harriet's life easy and 
pleasant. 

Her life of indolence and self-indulgence has 
made her selfish, flippant, self-willed; while in 
him the hard experiences of life have developed 
all the fine and sturdy qualities of a sterling 
manhood. Thus, each represents a type; each has 
inherited the good qualities of their common- 
mother, and each in turn is the product of en- 
vironment. 

Harriet at the age of sixteen had an "affair'' 
which resulted in the birth of a boy. To save his 
sister from disgrace, Melvin adopts the baby and 
brings it up as a member of his own family which 
then consists of his wife and a boy of about the 
other's age. 



The rich aunt's disapproval of the first mar- 
riage of her niece (Mrs. Malcolm, Sr.), and her 

resentment went over to the offspring (Melrin). 
So deep was her feeling against the child that 

when Harriet was taken into the aunt's family 
it was with the understanding Harriet must dis- 
own her brother. Harriet obeyed this injunction 
to the letter until she had need of him in her 
trouble.] 

THE STORY. 

Harriet has married in her own circle and 
finds in her husband Horace Lynbrook all that 
marriage can be in such circumstances. He is a 
lawyer of note, at present Public Prosecutor, of 
distinguished appearance, manly and socially 
popular. Mrs. Lynbrook, by reason of her hus- 
band's means and social position and her own 
beauty and charm of manner, is a leader in the 
smart set. 

Their daughter ({race, a pretty, young creature 
of fourteen, is her father's one great passion. 

To the outer world they appeared an ideal fam- 
ily; within discord knawed. Lynbrook, natural- 
ly domineering, became jealous of his beautiful 
wife, and from this and her frivolous mode of life 
many disputes arose. Matters in time culminated 
in a break which only the child Grace was able 
to prevent becoming public property. For her 
sake they kept their infelicity to themselves and 
worried along each knowing their course must 
eventuate in ruin. 

Harriet has been receiving enquiring letters 
from her illegitimate son Roger, then around six- 
teen years old, asking for information about his 
birth. "While he knew nothing more than his 



5 

adoption, rumor had hinted that she knew some- 
thing of his past and hence the demand for infor- 
mation. These letters were allowed to remain un- 
answered. Many times Roger during his vacation 
at home, asked Melvin about his birth, his father 
and mother, but was given evasive answers which 
only irritated the sensitive, high-strung boy and 
made him the more determined to learn the truth. 

One night Harriet having received a threaten- 
ing letter from Roger, telephones her brother, 
tells him of the letter, its insistent tone, and begs 
him to come to 1km- at once. He remonstrates 
against this by calling attention to the lateness of 
the hour. She persists, however, and he agrees to 
come to her. Roger has overheard enough of the 
conversatioD to make him decide to follow his 
foster-father. 

Lynbrook happening to enter the room while 
Harriet is at the telephone, learns of the appoint- 
ment, hears the words of endearment and entreaty 
and is convinced his wife is faithless. Her confu- 
sion when he comes upon her suddenly is to him 
further proof of guilt. When asked is she going 
out she replies "yes." This he knows is a lie for he 
has just heard her make the appointment with 
Melvin. He in order to deceive her says he must 
attend a conference. Neither goes out. He hides 
in an adjoining room, she returns to the drawing 
room a few moments later to receive her brother. 

While Melvin and Harriet are planning how to 
prevent the scandal from becoming known, Roger 
appears and demands an explanation. When the 
truth is revealed to him his anger rises to emo- 
tional madness. His mother who has not seen 
him since birth, finds her heart stirred with ma- 
ternal vearnings and begs his forgiveness. Her 



6 

obvious suffering touches his pity and he relents, 
forgiveness follows, and in a paroxysm of anguish, 
the wretched boy rushes from the house. Shortly 
after Melvin leaves, having pledged himself to pro- 
tect his sister's secret. 

A moment later a loud report preceded by the 
honk of an automobile is heard. The butler who 
has just returned from showing .Melvin to the door, 
when asked about the report says it was probably 
a "blowout," and being dismissed, retires. 

Immediately afterward voices are heard in the 
corridor by which it appears the report was a pis- 
tol shot, young Roger has been found on the 
sidewalk in front of the house dead of a shot 
wound, and Melvin is being taken by the officers 
to Harriet for identification. 

Just as the officer "is about to enter, and Harriet 
in the spell of honor is standing at the door, Lyn- 
brook opens the door opposite, calls her name 
when with a shriek she all but collapses. Taking 
in the situation hut failing in a correct interpre- 
tation of it because he knows nothing of the iden- 
tity of Melvin, he then and there determines to 
avenge his imaginary wrong and tells Harriet he 
will convict the man. 

Lynbrook prosecutes Melvin for homicide. The 
evidence is quite convincing. It consists of in- 
criminating letters found on Roger and Melvin 
from which a motive is spelled out as follows: A 
scandal is to be hushed up, Roger threatens to ex- 
pose it ; the suffering of the unknown mother is 
pictured by Melvin, and in one letter he says "any 
one who would cruelly bring such misery upon 
his own mother deserves to be shot." Melvin was 
found running from the corpse; the supposed 
murder was committed with his own pistol which 



he always carried on his person; the boy had no 
known enemies, and his money and jewelry were 
found untouched. The defense is suicide but it 
fails because Melvin will not tell where he was just 
before the fatal shot was fired. Lynbrook has em- 
ployed his splendid talents to their utmost and 
convicts Melvin who is sentenced to die in the 
electric chair on the day set by the judge. Appeals 
having failed, Crawford, his attorney, makes a 
final effort to save his client's life by commuta- 
tion of the sentence to life imprisonment. 

Lynbrook, his vengeance appeased by the con- 
viction of his rival, joins Crawford in the applica- 
tion for Executive action. 

On the day set for the execution Mrs. Malcolm, 
her son Lamont, Harriet and Grace are assembled 
awaiting the fatal hour when the victim of the 
Power of the State will expiate a crime he never 
committed. Crawford has discussed the trial and 
the evidence on which the conviction was ob- 
tained, and later tells of his efforts to save Mel- 
vin. No word from the Governor has been re- 
reived. As the time approaches Lamont un- 
able to stand the fearful strain any longer, 
rushes from the room to find solace in the street. 
The clock strikes the hour and the unhappy 
wife sinks into Harriet's arms. Suddenly La- 
mont bursts into the room carrying an after- 
noon paper in his hand. He announces jubi- 
lantly the Governor has saved Melvin's life 
by commuting the sentence to life-imprison- 
ment. Mrs. Malcolm is overcome by her 
conflicting emotions. Crawford snatches the paper 
from the boy's hand and learns from the head- 
lines that the current had been shut off just in 
time to save the prisoner's life. Melvin ac- 



8 

cording to the report was in a precarious condi- 
tion. 

Mrs. .Malcolm, now in want is offered a home for 
herself and Lamont with Mrs. Lynbrook. From 
this the love affair between Grace and Lamont 
grows. 

Thus is the first stage of the power of the 
state exemplified. 

Crawford now sets himself the task of freeing 
his friend from the clutches of the law. He 
knows Melvin is innocent and yet is forced to 
admit to himself as a lawyer of experience, the 
circumstantial evidence was more than sufficient 
to warrant the conviction. 

Five years have elapsed and Melvin is doing a 
life term in State Prison. The law has put the 
felon's brand upon him; it has removed him 
from the society of decent people; it has taken 
from him his liberty, and he must count himself 
fortunate the state spared his life. 

Grace and Lamont have grown to young man 
and womanhood. They have fallen in love with 
each other. Harriet is happy in this arrange- 
ment; Lynbroook as yet knoAvs nothing about 
it. does not even know of Lamont. Harriet 
warns the young lovers of the hopelessness of 
their passion for she well knows Lynbrook would 
never permit the marriage once he knows La- 
mont is the son of Melvin. 

Lynbrook from the beginning has, as Public 
Prosecutor, opposed by every influence he could 
command, the passage of a proposed bill to com- 
pensate innocent persons wrongfully convicted of 
crime. 

The lovers must abide their time while Harriet 
is watching for an opportunity to serve them. 





In the meantime Crawford continues his seem- 
ingly hopeless efforts in his friend's behalf. One 
day Mrs. Malcolm while hunting for something 
comes upon Roger's diary written day by day, 
in which the tortured boy set forth his anguish 
over the cloud upon his birth — the bar sinister. 
On the date of the supposed murder was an en- 
try "if I find out that 1 am illegitimate I Avill kill 
myself." Then in a shaky scrawl the final tragic 
thought is recorded : "I half suspect my foster- 
father is my real father. I will follow him to- 
night to that woman's house and if I learn what 
I now suspect, my father's pistol shall put an end 
to it all." 

Crawford next interviews Hershey, the Lyn- 
brook butler, who refuses to say anything. Craw- 
ford suspects he is hiding something important. 
He plays on his feelings by describing the inno- 
cent man's suffering. Finally Hershey admits he 
knows something he always wanted to tell but 
was prevented from doing so by Lynbrook, who, 
having the man under a suspended sentence 
for an old offence, was able to secure his silence 
by threat of arrest and imprisonment. Crawford 
finds there is no merit in Lynbrook's pretended 
power and Hershey being assured no harm can 
come to him, tells of Melvin's presence in the 
vestibule when the shot was fired outside. "In 
fact," he added, "I was just saying when we 
heard the report, how much a 'blow out' sounds 
like a pistol shot." 

Lamont, unwilling to defer his hopes any 
longer decides to ask Lynbrook for Grace's hand 
in marriage. A stormy scene follows when 
Lamont acknowledges his father. Lynbrook or- 
ders Lamont from the house. Grace, now a 



10 

.spirited young woman who possesses some of her 
father's own force of character, tells her father 
if Lamont leaves she will leave with him. Lyn- 
brook remonstrates, threatens to disinherit her 
if she persists in her disobedience. Finding this 
threat also unavailing, he launches a tirade of 
abuse at the absent father, and in a burst of 
rage accuses Melvin of ruining his home. Har- 
riet comes forward and defends her present honor 
by acknowledging Roger as her illegitimate son 
and. proclaiming Melviu her brother. Lynbrook 
is overcome by this revelation, for thus he learns 
he has ruined the life of a man who was not 
only innocent of the crime charged, but also 
guiltless of the other wrong. 

Lynbrook has been elected Covei-nor of the 
State. 

Crawford is about ready to make his final ap- 
peal for Melvin. Having in his possession enough 
evidence to accomplish the downfall of the proud 
Governor, he determines on a course of retribu- 
tion. Harriet learns of this and by the co- 
operation of Mrs. Malcolm, and to save Grace 
and Lamont from humiliation, Crawford consents 
to change his plans of vengeance. He confronts 
Lynbrook with the proof of his guilt in suppress- 
ing evidence to gratify a personal spite. Cor- 
nered and unable to escape, Lynbrook admits his 
fault and cooperates with Crawford in securing 
Melvin's freedom. Lynbrook is forced to sign Mal- 
colm's pardon, which is his first official act and by 
the second his signature to the Compensation Bill 
makes it the law of the State. Then he is com- 
pelled to resign and retire to private life, while the 
young people, the father's opposition being now 
removed, are happily united. 



11 

Melvin, after live rears of penal servitude is 
restored to his family. He is broken in health, 
his business is gone, his hopes are shattered, and 
the memory of his terrible experience in the 
electric chair must ever abide as a reminder of 
the Power of the State. 

The State by its corrupt and wicked servant 
has perpetrated a great wrong. But for this 
wrong committed by the State in the exercise of 
its sovereign powers, it makes no amends. 

(The End.) 




LIBRARY OF CONGRESS 



vi mil inn II ill ii 

015 793 121 % 



